₦airaland Forum

oladayo042: Atiku should take a cue from this - He is bound to fail in his Presidential ambition. Ceteris Paribus

ckkris: Which PDP does INEC know.

The First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, and International Telecommunication Union (ITU) will on Tuesday, Sept. 3, host representatives of youths to an Online Protection Summit in Abuja.

This is contained in a statement released in Abuja on Saturday and signed by Mrs Ayo Adesugba, a Director of Information in the Presidency.

It said the summit, tagged: “The Internet: Emerging Threats and Solutions for the Youth’’, was being organised by ITU with Federal Ministries of Communication Technology and Youth Development

The statement said the summit was expected to underscore the importance of Internet as a modern day tool for excellence and a vehicle for exposing the vulnerability of youths.

The statement listed the objectives of the summit to include discussing cyber safety; enlightening youths on cyber security; and the need to stay safe while utilising online resources.

The statement said the summit was also expected to produce youth-focused initiatives and ideas to promote the safety of youths on information super highway.

“Youths attending the summit will hold an interactive forum with the First Lady while she will unveil the Child Online Protection (COP) Champion Website at the event.

“Participants will receive online protection training provided by Google Nigeria, while 100 lucky participants will be offered scholarships for ICT training from New Horizons.

“All participants will receive the Online Protection Guide Book’’, the statement added.
Jonathan was decorated in Geneva on July 20, following her appointment as Online Child Protection Champion by ITU and the International Multilateral Partnership against Cyber Threats (IMPACT). (NAN)

theSpark: Niger+Kwara are not generally considered middle belt. Taraba and maybe Adamawa are considered as middle belt. Nasarawa state voted GEJ in 2011 and still kicked out the PDP governor the next week, so it wudnt be strange if they still vote GEJ. This depends on who is opposing him tho.

The Patriots met with President Goodluck Jonathan in Abuja.
One of Nigeria’s most senior lawyers, Ben Nwabueze, has advised President Goodluck Jonathan to shelve his ambition for 2015 and focus on transforming the country.
This he said would make the President go down in history as a hero.
Mr. Nwabueze,an octogenarian Professor of Constitutional Law, stated his while fielding questions from journalists at the Presidential Villa after leading a group, “The Patriot” on a courtesy visit to Mr. Jonathan to submit their memorandum for transforming the nation through a national conference.
“I still believe … that you cannot combine national transformation with contesting election.The two are so different, because once you get involved in the elections campaigns you undermine your authority to lead the nation for national transformation and I said if I were the President of Nigeria that I would restrict myself in serving the nation, in transforming this country in creating a new Nigeria in creating a new society that would be my concern and I would go down in history as a hero.
“So if Mr President does that he would become an instant hero to this country, but it is for him to chose, if I were him, I would choose to become a hero to lead the country into transformation and abandon the ambition of a second term, that is what I said and I still stand by it and that is what I would do if I were the President of the country, but unfortunately, I’m not,” he said.
He maintained that though the president was eligible to contest, it was his choice to do so.
Though Mr. Jonathan has not officially declared he would seek a second term in office in 2015, many of his aides and political associates have already started campaigns for him. The president had cautioned that it was too early to start campaigning for an election that is still twoyears away and he would prefer to concentrate on delivering on the mandate given him by Nigerians in 2011.
Mr. Nwabueze also urged the president to support the production of a new constitution thattruly derives its authority directly from the people of Nigeria.
“It is important that the National Assembly is putting forward that their powers under Sections 8 and 9 is to alter the constitution; power to alteris not as important as to power to abolish what you are altering and to replace it completely. And we said no; this country, we need the people’s constitution whose source of authority derives directly from the people, forget about the contents, we will talk about the contents later, presidential, parliamentary and all that. Though important, but they are not as important as the source, where does this supreme law derive its authorities?
“It must be directly from the people and that is the position of at least 85 per cent of the countries of the word. So we examined this and we said this a bogey, there is no problem, don’t confine yourselves to Sections 8 and 9, because the 1999 constitution is a schedule to Decree 24,if you read Section 1(1) of the Decree there are all preambles to that Decree and the 1999 constitution that you are talking about is a schedule to Decree 24.
“Repeal the Decree and the constitution will disappear and you enact a brand new constitution which would derive its authorities from the people, that was what was done in 1963, when we adopted the Republican Constitution to replace the Independent Constitution.
“That 1960 Constitution was also a schedule to British Order-In -Council just as the 1999 Constitution is a schedule to the Decree 24. In 1963, we abolished the schedule under Section 2of the Order-in-Council and made a new constitution called the Republican constitution. That is what we should do now, abolish the schedule and relieve yourself entirely free to make the people’s constitution,” he said.

The president said his administration was reviewing the possibility of convoking a nationalconference.
President Goodluck Jonathan has declared that his administration is not opposed to dialogue among Nigeria’s various ethnic nationalities and is reviewing the possibility of a national conference
Mr. Jonathan said he was not opposed to Nigerians coming together to discuss how they would continue to live together in peace and unity.
Speaking after receiving a memorandum from The Patriots, led by Ben Nwabueze, on the need for a national conference, Mr. Jonathan said that the issue of Nigerians coming together to discuss their future should not be out of place.
He told the group that there has been constant discussion within government on how to create an acceptable platform for a national dialogue that will reinforce the ties that bind the country’smany ethnic nationalities and ensure that Nigeria’s immense diversity continues to be a source of strength and greatness.
“The limitation we have is that the constitution appears to have given that responsibility to the National Assembly.
“I have also been discussing the matter with the leadership of the National Assembly. We want a situation where everyone will key into the process and agree on the way forward,” he said.
He thanked the Patriots for acknowledging the Federal Government’s efforts to implement his administration’s agenda for national transformation.
“As a government, we are totally committed to transforming this country, Positive things are being done and by the grace of God, we will get to where we ought to be as a nation,” he said.
The Patriots’ delegation included Ayo Adebanjo, Solomon Asemota, Chris Okoye, Bola Kuforiji-Olubi, Dan Suleiman, Kimse Okoko, and Michael Orobator.
President Jonathan also welcomed the group’s call for the moral re-orientation of Nigerians, saying that he shared their belief that ongoing efforts at national transformation and development will be greatly enhanced and facilitated by the cultivation of better national ethics and attitudes.
Speaking to journalists after meeting with the President, Mr. Nwabueze, a Professor of Constitutional Law, said the convocation of a national conference was the fastest way to achieve the most needed transformation in the country.
“We have done our own research; and we are not perfect. But our own review is that we have in this country 389 ethnic nationalities. We needto bring these nationalities around a conference table to discuss how we are going to live together as one country in peace, in stability in security as one country with the aim of achieving national unity,” he said.
Mr. Nwabueze said Nigeria was not yet a nation but a state and the convening of the national conference should be seen “as a matter of priority as soon as possible, in any event before 2015 general elections”.
The Patriots is among various pressure and rights groups that have demanded the convocation of a national conference to discuss Nigeria’s future.

eddiebruk: so US government must shook mouth for every matter wey concern Nigeria...?, i smell a rat , and as for FG, it is really a big shame that this issue is now going outside the country, i wonder what those countries that hate Nigerians will be saying regarding this country in times like this.

Dibiachukwu: To the average m.a.d Nigerian.
Speaking the truth = reckless talk. Why are you people allergic to truth?

OBASANJO ERA CENSUS COOKED UP

Chairman of the National Population Commission Mr. Festus Odimegwu stepped up his campaign to discredit previous censuses yesterday, saying the 2006 census figures were mostly cooked up.

Mr. Odimegwu, who was managing director of the Nigerian Breweries at the time, said officials forged figures for states and local governments in the census, which held during the regime of President Olusegun Obasanjo.

Since his assumption of office, the population chief has waged a strident campaign to question the veracity of past census figures, once saying no previous census had been credible.

Speaking at a news conference in Abuja yesterday, he said: "There was no census. The governor of Niger wrote, that they were waiting for enumerators, they didn't come, people left, that is why we have so many cases in the tribunal."

He added that "mind you population forgery is done everywhere, is done in every states, every locality, every region, it's not restricted in any particular region. It's done everywhere because politicians want to manipulate it because they want to use it during politics."

Odimegwu said during a review of the 2006 census in Minna, Niger State, he heard from an official named Inuwa Mohammed of how money was used to influence the process.

"Mohammed stood up and told the whole commissioners, all the former directors and new directors that were there for the meeting, how they shared 3 million Pounds and N90 million in a hotel room. The money of hiring and training of enumerators for the census, that there was no census," he said.

"Somebody called me and said, 'chairman you must hear this.' I said put Mohammed on the phone and
I said 'Mohammed I love you, I wished all Nigerians are like you, you are the type of person if you are near me, I would have kissed you.' And I appointed him my SA in charge of anti-corruption in the NPC."
Odimegwu said because of his belief that the 2006 census was flawed, he had since asked the commission's lawyers to stop defending cases filed by states and local governments in court challenging the results.

He gave an example of the instance when then-governor of Lagos State, Bola Tinubu, disputed the figures for the state. He said Tinubu "conducted his census in Lagos and got 17.2 million people instead of (population commission chairman Samuila) Makama's 9 million. We have so many issues against the commission. I have asked the lawyer to stop defending it because what the people are saying is truth; we have never done a census."

Gov. Rauf Aregbesola of the western Nigerian state of Osun has inaugurated a modern garment factory built at a cost of N1.2 billion.
Aregbesola said at the inauguration ceremony of the project that the factory, `Omoluabi Garment` would be producing 50,000 uniforms per a day at full capacity.
The governor also said that more than 3000 youths would be employed to work at the factory.
“In an economy where no fewer than 3000 youths will be employed to work, that will surely boost the economy.”
The governor said that the establishment of thefactory would contribute to economic growth and also generate revenue for the state.
Aregbesola noted that the State Government would continue to provide the enabling environment and security for investors.
“We remain resolute in the implementation of our policy that will be of benefit to our people and improve our economy,” he said.
The Commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives and Empowerment, Mr Ismaila Alagbada, said that the factory was the largest of its type in West Africa.
He said that the factory would turn around the economy of the state.
The Managing Director of the factory, Mrs Folake Oyemade, said that more than 500 youths were currently undergoing garment making training.
Oyemade said that by the end of the year, the factory would have trained 3,000 youths.
“ With the advent of this training programme, we are working toward reducing the rate of unemployment and improving the economy of the state,” Oyemade said.

babseg: Let's see if they landed safely with proof of pictures.